it plays a huge role in peace talks between palestinian leaders and the israel government. the united states gives egypt's military more than $1 billion every year. our -- what do we make of the marshal law? has that been imposed? >> reporter: gretchen, that warning from the defense minister, raising a lot of eyebrows and echoing a lot of concerns about egypt right now. there have been several days of ongoing protests and violent riots. muhammad morsi instituted marshal law on sunday night, defending the law. he has gone into three city, including suez, a major hub. morsi defended it, saying it was necessary, but it is similar to what was imposed imposed on es in three decades of the mubarak era. many egyptioians defied the order and they complain that morsi is a new islamic mubarak, comparing to the former president and strong man. he has reached out to opposition groups to form a dialogue, but the opposition group, so far, have refused to meet with him. >> if they don't talk to him, what's the next step? >> reporter: well, there are parliamentary elections in the spring,